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Sep 28, 2019 10:46 am

Shock, Titans set for heavyweight clash in Grand Finals

The Season 2 Grand Finals between the Vancouver Titans and San Francisco Shock pits one of the league’s original franchises against an expansion upstart in Philadelphia on Sunday, Sept. 29.

Vancouver, which entered the playoffs as the top seed, did what it was expected to do by reaching the Grand Finals. The expansion team had perfect records in Stage 1 and Stage 2 of its first season in the league, then showed some mortality in Stage 3 and weakness in Stage 4. In the playoffs, however, the Titans adjusted to the new 2-2-2 meta. The communication and inventiveness they displayed during the playoffs will be necessary for them to take down San Francisco.

The Shock earned their name earlier this season, completing the league’s first and so far only perfect stage (they didn’t lose a single map) in Stage 2. They entered the postseason as the third seed, however, due to similar struggles to adjust to the metashift. The Shock then suffered a tight seven-map upset at the hands of the Atlanta Reign in their first playoff match.

After that, however, San Francisco would not be denied. The team won every map through the losers’ bracket from that point forward to get to the Grand Finals.

When both teams take the Wells Fargo Center stage at 3 p.m. ET on Sunday, it will be a familiar sight both ways. San Francisco and Vancouver faced off twice during stage finals this year, splitting those two matches. Their third meeting in a playoff setting, this time for the league championship, should be a tight one as well. The match should be decided by a couple of factors.

The Shock have garnered success by being aggressive and hoping their risks pay off. More often than not so far, that has been the case. Vancouver, on the other hand, is a calculated opponent that is efficient and systematic in its play. Sunday’s maps will determine which of these philosophies will win out.

A particular matchup that could decide the match at large is between this season’s Rookie of the Year and MVP. Titans rookie Hyojong “Haksal” Kim and Shock veteran Jay “sinatraa” Won are two of the best Doomfist players in the league and whichever of these two is able to overpower the other at the DPS role will give his team a significant advantage in the match overall.

Winning the first map could be crucial for Vancouver as well. San Francisco hasn’t dropped a single map since the first-round upset and Stage 2 was proof of the complete dominance the Shock are capable of once they build up significant momentum.

Quelling that confidence by dealing San Francisco a loss right off the bat could back the Shock off their attacking stances and put them in a defensive mood, with which they are far less comfortable.

The winner of Sunday’s match will win the $1.1 million grand prize.

–Field Level Media (@FieldLevelMedia)



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